Oral products providing flavor and/or one or more active ingredients are well known. One such oral product is chewing gum (e.g., nicotine gum). Other oral products include hard candies (e.g., mints). Softer gelatin-based oral products are also known. Pharmaceutical and therapeutic products (e.g., cough-suppressant lozenges) can also be provided in a solid form for oral consumption. Smokeless tobacco products can also be provided in a number of different forms.
Having consistent product weights can be important for product safety reasons and/or for labeling requirements. Having consistent dimensions can also improve the appeal of manufactured products. A checkweigher can be used to make sure that a product is of a desired weight. A checkweigher is an automatic machine for checking the weight of a product or a packaged commodity. It is normally found at the offgoing end of a production process and is used to ensure that the weight of a product or package is within specified limits. Any products or packages that are outside the tolerance are taken out of line automatically. Having a process that consistently forms products of a consistent size and/or weight can reduce costs and by eliminating the production of reject products.